---
Chapter 5 – The One Who Watches from Beyond
The breeze stirred gently across the desolate mountain, brushing past broken statues and cracked stone tiles. Lin Mo lay lazily on a moss-covered boulder, arms behind his head, one foot tapping in rhythm with a song only he seemed to know.
"Ahhh, peace. No bandits, no weird system pings, no disciples crying—"
"Master!" Luo Yixue's voice echoed from behind the temple walls.
Lin Mo's eyes twitched. "…I jinxed it, didn't I?"
He sat up reluctantly. The sun glinted off the shattered jade tiles behind him. Luo Yixue ran toward him, her robes fluttering like a bird's wings, but her steps were light, careful. She held something in her hands—a broken flute, cracked down the middle.
"I tried using spiritual energy on this, but it shattered…"
Lin Mo blinked at her. "Girl, you tried to force Qi into an instrument made of dead bamboo. What did you expect, a divine melody?"
She pouted. "You said it might be magical!"
"I said it might be a trap. How did magical become musical?" He sighed and scratched his head. "Fine, leave it. We'll buy you a new one from the next city. Preferably one that doesn't explode."
As Luo Yixue turned away with a sheepish nod, Lin Mo's smile faded. His gaze turned serious as he looked out toward the cliff's edge. For a brief moment, a ripple in the air flashed—like a curtain swaying in an invisible breeze.
He felt… watched.
---
Somewhere Else, Beyond All Things...
Beyond the sky, beyond the stars, beyond the very concept of "existence"—a place existed that had no place. No time. No logic.
A quill hovered in the void, writing with ink that looked like galaxies.
A hand held it—massive, divine, yet ungraspable. It did not belong to a man or a beast. It was something more. Something ancient.
Something that had written everything.
> "So, this one... Lin Mo," the voice echoed softly across the boundless nothing. "Still clueless about the system draft I dropped into his story. Hah. Delightful."
There was no one around him, and yet, the Author spoke—perhaps to himself. Or perhaps to you.
> "I wanted a tragic story. Or maybe a comedy? He keeps improvising. And that poor disciple… almost died yesterday."
The quill paused mid-air.
> "Hmph. He doesn't even know I gave him the Divine Body—The One-Above-Karma Core. And now he's growing attached to that little girl?"
Another stroke on the parchment.
> "Let's stir things up a bit…"
---
Back at the Sect
Lin Mo shivered slightly.
He looked around. "Did it just… get cold?"
Luo Yixue looked up from cleaning the stone path. "Nope. It's super sunny, Master."
"…Weird." He muttered under his breath. "System, you sensing anything?"
[Ding! Everything Normal, Master.]
"Why do I not believe you?"
He stretched and walked toward the ancient well near the courtyard. As he passed by, a gentle breeze rolled across his back again.
For the third time that day, his instincts screamed.
And that's when he saw it—
A scroll lying open on the old offering table near the shrine. It wasn't there before. He was sure of it.
The calligraphy was perfect. Impossibly clean. The kind that no mortal hand could write.
> "Welcome to the story, dear character. Try not to die too fast."
Lin Mo's heart skipped.
He looked left. Right. Up. Down. No one.
"Who… wrote this?" he whispered.
Suddenly, the words shimmered—and vanished in a puff of gold dust.
---
Meanwhile… in the Forest
Far from Lin Mo's temple, a cloaked figure dashed between trees. His breath came ragged. His eyes were filled with fear.
He had witnessed something he shouldn't have—a flickering crack in the world. A hand, too large to belong to any being, reaching into reality and pulling strings.
"I shouldn't have seen that…"
The man ran faster.
He didn't get far.
The sky twisted. A single stroke of invisible ink cut across space.
His body was never found.
---
Lin Mo's Confusion (And Comedy)
Lin Mo sat back down on his rock and stared at the clouds above.
"I swear, someone's playing tricks on me."
He turned toward Luo Yixue. "Tell me, disciple. If an immortal being was watching you and writing your life like a novel, what would you do?"
Luo Yixue tilted her head. "...I'd ask for a cheat code."
"…Smart kid."
[Ding! New Reward Unlocked – 'Heavenly Pouch of Endless Meat Buns']
"See? This system is listening!"
He turned to the sky again and grinned.
"But you better give me something more useful next time. Maybe a manual that doesn't try to melt my face off!"
He laughed… but it didn't reach his eyes.
---
Elsewhere in a Nameless Domain
The God Author leaned back into the void.
> "Hmm. That was cute."
He flicked his quill, and a single new page appeared.
At the top, it said:
Chapter 6: Mist Rises, Shadows Move
> "Let's see how you handle a minor villain…"
---
Back at the Sect – Nightfall
The wind carried a scent of incense. The stars shimmered, but one of them… blinked.
Lin Mo meditated outside, watching the moon.
Suddenly—
[Ding! Emergency Notification: Someone has intruded into the Forbidden Basement.]
"What? There's a basement?!"
He jumped up. Luo Yixue came rushing out. "Master?"
Lin Mo didn't answer. He dashed toward the temple hall.
There was no map. No guide. Yet something guided his feet.
Down the crumbling hallway… behind a hidden wall… and into complete darkness.
Then—he found it.
A sealed stone door covered in ancient runes.
One word glowed on it.
> "WRITTEN."
Lin Mo froze. "...What kind of seal is that?"
As he reached out to touch it—
A whisper brushed past his ear.
> "Careful now, protagonist. Wouldn't want you seeing Season 3's spoilers early."
He turned around in shock. No one.
[System Message: Unknown Interference Detected.]
---
Lin Mo steps back. His eyes narrow.
"Something's very wrong with this place…"
He glances toward the night sky. One of the stars flickers again—then reshapes into the form of a quill before vanishing.
And far, far above him… in a realm beyond imagination…
The God Author writes with a smile.
> "Oh, Lin Mo. You're going to be fun to toy with."
Chapter 6 – A Master's Wrath, A Disciple's Awakening
Lin Mo sat beneath the peach blossom tree once again. The air was still, but something in his gaze had shifted. The casual indifference he always wore… was gone.
In front of him lay Luo Yixue, sleeping peacefully in the grass after recovering from her wounds. Her face was calm now, not like the pale and bloodied one from before.
He gently picked up a strand of her hair and tucked it behind her ear.
His voice was soft.
> "This world is too cruel for someone like you… little disciple."
The system suddenly chimed.
[Ding! A strong emotional fluctuation detected. Disciplinary Protocol Engaged.]
[Master's Rage Bonus Activated: x5 Strength, x5 Qi Density, x5 Pressure.]
Before Lin Mo could respond—
A rumble echoed from the forest below. Dozens of silhouettes approached. Slowly. Quietly. Intending to surprise him.
> "You see, Master," a cold voice spoke up from the shadows of the trees, "we thought you'd run away. Just like you ran from your responsibilities."
It was the elder brother of the cultivator Lin Mo had slapped into the wall a few days ago.
He stood with nine other inner disciples from a rival sect — the Black Palm Pavilion — known for their brutality and cowardly tricks.
Their robes were soaked with yin qi, each carrying cruel weapons like curved bone sabers and rusted iron whips.
One of them, laughing, pointed at Luo Yixue.
> "That girl… she's the one, right? The one you risked everything for? Heh. Cute."
A smirk tugged at Lin Mo's lips.
> "So… you chose death."
The wind fell silent.
With one light step, Lin Mo vanished from view. A second later—
BANG!
The ground cracked as one of the attackers was slammed face-first into a tree. Blood sprayed from his mouth as his bones shattered.
The other attackers barely had time to blink before another two were flung into the air like dolls.
> "H-He's not using a weapon!"
"Where is his Qi signature?! It's like… it's like fighting air!"
One of them screamed.
> "Retreat! Retreat—!"
Too late.
Lin Mo wasn't simply fighting. He was making a statement.
Each of his strikes was effortless. Lazy, almost. But deadly.
He flicked one attacker on the forehead, sending him flying into the mountain wall, where he embedded like a bug. Another, he grabbed by the collar and swung him into two others like a club.
Even the forest itself seemed to move with him. Tree roots curled up from the ground, creating obstacles. Leaves fell like knives.
And all the while…
A strange, invisible pressure loomed over the entire area — as if something… or someone… was watching.
Far beyond this realm, across layers of existence, the God Author leaned back in his throne of lightless ink and watched the scene like a reader enjoying his favorite drama.
He chuckled.
> "Good… good. Now that's entertainment."
His ink-stained finger hovered over a floating script. A line slowly wrote itself:
"Lin Mo is free — and that's what entertains the strongest being of all time."
The universe trembled. But Lin Mo?
He was too busy yawning.
---
Back at the fight's end, Lin Mo dusted off his sleeves. Nine attackers groaned in unconscious piles around him.
He glanced at Luo Yixue, still asleep.
> "If anyone dares touch my disciple… there's only one outcome."
Just as he said this, a golden light emerged from Luo Yixue's chest.
[Ding! Disciple Bond Fully Activated!]
[System Update: First Disciple Accepted. Reward Distribution Engaged.]
[You have received: Heaven's Void Body (Immortal Grade – 1st Layer Unsealed)]
[You have received: One Random Divine Artifact. Opening…]
[Artifact Obtained: Chaotic Ink Fan (Mystery Grade – Bound to Master Only)]
[System has evolved. God-Rank functions unlocked (partial).]
Lin Mo blinked.
> "A fan? What kind of broken system—"
He opened it with a flick.
BOOM!
The wind from the fan alone split the trees in half across the mountain ridge. A passing hawk was blown clean into the sky, spiraling like a feather.
> "…Okay. Not bad."
He smirked.
Suddenly, a faint laugh echoed across the wind. Only Lin Mo heard it.
> "Nice swing, disciple of chaos. Let's see how far your freedom takes you."
Lin Mo paused.
His eyes narrowed.
> "Who… said that?"
But no answer came.
He stared at the fan again.
> "What's next, Heavenly Underwear of Shame?"